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Buckle Up! It’s Going to be a Bumpy Road to Wrestlemania

Every time you set off ona road trip, you should be prepared for the unexpected. Make sure you have a spare tire, a gas can with spare fuel, a flash light, blankets, and water in the trunk of your vehicle, because you just never know when you will get a flat, break down, or get lost.

Right now, the WWE appears to be lost!

Last night as I sat in my seat at the Royal Rumble and observed the crowd, I was impressed by the shear capacity of the Consol Energy Center in Pittsburgh. There wasn’t an empty seat in the house. As soon as “oh you didn’t know” hit the sound system, the fans revealed that they would have their ‘A’ game last night. Perhaps the WWE should have saved this match for the main event, because as the fans would clearly indicate after Daniel Bryan was not an entrant in the Royal Rumble, the WWE apparently “doesn’t know” and, “their ass better call somebody!”

After an entertaining match that saw the New Age Outlaws become the six-time WWE Tag Team Champions of the World, the thousands in attendance had a chance to catch their breath, grab a beverage, and get back to their seats in time to catch the opening of the Royal Rumble pay-per-view. Not since the night after Wrestlemania XXIX had there been a more amplified audience.

Daniel Bryan and Bray Wyatt had a great match and, while I am not (or wasn’t) a Bray Wyatt fan, last night I definitely took note of his standing on the WWE talent roster. The crowd continued to sound their support to the two superstars, even clapping to the beat of the Wyatt theme song. Through two matches last night, the WWE was on a traffic free, direct route to Wrestlemania.

But then, something happened. For some reason, the WWE’s GPS must have lost it’s signal because the WWE seemed to have also lost it’s mind.

Brock Lesnar and the Big Show was one of the poorest matches I have ever witnessed live, or on TV. Here’s how the production meeting had to have gone for this match.

Minutes 1-4: Brock will hit Big Show 37 times with a steel chair… Minutes 4-5: Big Show will give Brock the knockout punch (Brock will sell/stagger, but NOT be out)…Minutes 5-7: Brock recovers and hit’s F-5 (pin, match over)… Minutes 7-8: Brock removes gloves… Minutes 8-13: Brock will hit Big Show 142 times outside of ring with steel chair.

WWE – if you can hear me like you should have heard your crowd last night – WE ALL KNOW BROCK IS A BEAST! He is strong and violent, but we don’t need what you gave us to verify the point. He has it already, so utilize it properly. Instead, the WWE decided that this would be the first major roadblock on their Wrestlemania journey.

Randy Orton and John Cena, you almost have to feel bad for them. What did they do wrong? Then again, what has Daniel Bryan done wrong either? The best spot of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship match wasn’t even a bump, it was when Randy Orton turned the tables on the Pittsburgh crowd and, as they chanted “we want divas,” Orton posed as only a diva would to an applause that was comic relief. The entire time this match was taking place, there was major security prep going on directly to my right on the floor. At that time, we all knew SOMETHING was going to happen, but what? A run in didn’t make sense, so would the match make it’s way to the back?

And then the lights went out.

And then they came back on and the Wyatt Family distracted Cena long enough for Orton to capitalize and get the win. Orton immediately exited hard camera side through the crowd and, for all that security prep, decided he was going an alternate route to the backstage area. Looking back on that moment, as I write, it was a foreshadowing of what the night would end up as, a detour on the road to Wrestlemania.

The Rumble match itself had the potential to be the absolute best, ever. It turned out to be possibly the worst!

Aside from Roman Reigns establishing himself as the “big daddy cool” of the Shield, there wasn’t much to take away from the Rumble. Oh, yeah, because the WWE’s most over superstar in years wasn’t even in the match!

Sure, Antonio Cesaro made us all dizzy with his 30 revolutions on the big spin and Kofi Kingston made a pair of amazing eliminations saves, but other than that, mission control had a problem… such as Kane mistiming his CM Punk elimination spot so badly that he had to “hide” at ringside for more than 5 minutes before he would actually execute the plan.

But El Torito provided comedic relief, so who cares, right?

Rey Mysterio took the final spot in the match, and that is when the riot squad should have been called in, because there were 15,000 fans who were seemingly about to charge the ring and eliminate everyone and everything in sight.

At the end of the night, the most obvious thing happened, Batista won his second Royal Rumble. He will now go on to the main event at Wrestlemania XXX. Who he faces is still to be determined. Will it be Randy Orton, or someone else, like the winner of an elimination chamber match?

Here’s what we just about know is going to happen in 69 days in New Orleans:

John Cena will face Bray Wyatt, CM Punk will face HHH, Batista will be in the main event. But then the guessing game begins – “Should we take a right or left on this road?”

Who is the Undertaker’s opponent going to be? Brock Lesnar? Daniel Bryan? Sting?!

Does the Shield make it that long to have a triple threat match to officially dissolve the group?

How about Cody Rhodes and Goldust, what do their futures hold?

The WWE has potholes a plenty they need to fill, which seemingly started to appear when the Rock was injured in the main event title match against Cena last year.

Will or HAS Sting signed with the WWE? A source has told me that he was actually in Pittsburgh yesterday and met with Vince McMahon. If that is true, could we see him on Raw tonight?

What will Hulk Hogan’s role be?

I am not sure the WWE knows any answers to any of these questions and, as the saying goes – if they don’t, their ass needs to call somebody. Perhaps the millions of WWE fans who have the simple answer, Daniel Bryan.